What Can You Do Right Now?

Set sprinklers to water the lawn or garden only - not the street or sidewalk.

 

Use the microwave to cook small meals. (It uses less power than an oven.)

 

Purchase "Green Power" for your home's electricity. (Contact your power supplier to see where and if it is available.)

 

Scrape, rather than rinse, dishes before loading into the dishwasher; wash only full loads.

 

Cut back on air conditioning and heating use if you can.

 

Turn off appliances and lights when you leave the room.

 

More Tips »

 

Tips at Home

* 08/28/2008

Go Green in your garden
What do you do with all of those empty plastic pots, trays and other containers after you place the plants in your garden? You can recycle them and help save the environment. News 4's Robin Smith has a lesson in how to go green in your garden.

• For more information

08/20/2008

Learn the basic of responsible painting
From just off white to mango orange, most people utilize paint to personalize their home. Based on this, It’s not surprising that paint is the most collected household hazardous waste at events across the country. There’s nothing wrong with jazzing up your living room or giving that old door a fresh coat; just be eco-wise while doing it.

* 08/06/2008

Eco-friendly products for babies
Going green isn't just for granola types. More parents are thinking eco-friendly when it comes to products and gear for their little ones.

* 07/29/2008

Tips on handling pesticides safely - if you must use them
In an ideal world, pesticides would never be needed in the garden. In the real world, occasionally they are needed. That doesn't mean you need harsh chemicals.

07/28/2008

BioBags make greening your kitchen easy
Few people want to walk outside to a compost pile every time they peel an apple or fry an egg. But storing waste in a bucket isn't all that appealing, either. Which is what makes BioBag Food Waste bags so great.

07/22/2008

Technology makes green innovations in the home
A decade of quantum technological leaps mean today's designers have in their hands a virtually bottomless toy box of new materials and methods. Now advances are not just industrial — they're green. Eco-friendly paints and adhesives, water-driven machinery, precision lasers, even organic powder coatings for steel are all relatively new technologies borne of the industry's desire to balance style and stewardship.

07/21/2008

8 ways to green your garage
Look up the word “garage” in the dictionary, and you’ll see some variation of the definition “an indoor area for parking/storing motor vehicles.” If only life were that simple. Chances are your garage contains much more than cars. Today’s garage is used for storage, housing noisy appliances (washer/dryer) and maybe even shelter for surprise visitors. So while you’re cleaning the garage this summer, consider greening it as well.

* 07/15/2008

Fluorescent bulbs create a mercury health risk in your light socket
Locked inside the base of every fluorescent bulb is a tiny amount of mercury. There is even a warning not to toss them into the trash.

* 07/14/2008

8 ways to green your kitchen
So all those gourmet cooking shows have inspired you to spend more time in the kitchen. But between energy use, water use and food/packaging disposal, there’s lots of opportunity to help or hurt the environment in the process.

07/08/2008

Beyond homes, entire neighborhoods going green
At a time when the housing market remains in a slump, consumer demand is growing for energy efficient homes that are kinder to the environment. And it's not just individual homes that are going green. Increasingly, it's entire neighborhoods.

07/04/2008

Sea lovers say coral is too precious to wear
Sea coral is blessed with wonderful colors, an intricate design and memories of the lapping ocean. It's no wonder that the worlds of fashion and home decor are in the midst of a love affair with it. Some argue, though, that coral is too precious to wear. "We want to discourage consumers from purchasing coral," says scientist Andrew Baker. "It's like ivory. It's a product of a living animal and the harvest of this item is unsustainable."

07/02/2008

Quick guide to composting
Turning your organic waste into useful mulch is more of possibility then you may think. This quick start guide will have you up and composting before you know it. What to compost: fruit and vegetable scrapes, egg shells, lawn clippings, shredded paper or newspaper, straw or hay, tea leaves and coffee grounds. What not to compost: meat scraps, fatty trash, vegetable or other cooking oils, sawdust or large amounts of wood ashes.

* 06/30/2008

New breed of CFLs focus on bulbs' aesthetics
Switching to efficient bulbs saves energy, but it also can create a design challenge. Swirly compact fluorescents stick out visually, don't work with traditional clip-on shades and can cast different colors of light than their incandescent counterparts.

* 06/23/2008

High gasoline prices changing lawn-mowing habits
Sales of manual — or push reel — mowers with the cartwheeling blades are on the rise this year.

* 06/19/2008

New lighting tech beats fluorescents, maker says
Organic light-emitting diodes, a technology that is being hailed as the future of home lighting, have surpassed fluorescent lights in energy efficiency, according a New Jersey company.

06/18/2008

Making a kite from an old plastic bag
Have more plastic shopping bags than you could ever reuse to line your household trash cans? With just a few other supplies, you can turn a spare bag into a kite.

* 06/17/2008

Want a lower electric bill? Start shopping
Plenty of residents complain they are seeing triple digits on their thermometers and electric bills. The surging heat and the price surge on the bills that come with the summer are hitting some residents particularly hard.

* 06/16/2008

Organic alcohol sparks new cocktail trend
Call it hedonistic environmentalism. Or maybe just eco-conscious imbibing. Either way, those who want their dirty martini to be a little cleaner are increasingly pouring organic spirits into their glass.

* 06/10/2008

Green gossip: The reusable bag
Green Gossip is an exclusive Earth 911 series that lets our writers talk about their experiences with everyday green issues. In this episode, Brandi Powell discusses her battle with the reusable bag.

* 05/19/2008

Recycling options lag the compact fluorescent push
It's a message being drummed into the heads of homeowners everywhere: Swap out those incandescent lights with longer-lasting compact fluorescent bulbs and cut your electric use.

* 05/16/2008

The perfect lawn, but at what price?
Last year, as a nation, we spent $35 billion in products to help us reach that goal. But did you know that you can have one of the greenest lawns around with no weeding, no watering, and no maintenance at all?

05/13/2008

Make your backyard grilling greener
As you get ready for spring, it's time to give your grilling tools a tune-up. Check out the latest gear, plus tips for environmentally conscious outdoor cooking.

Santa Fe Passive House featured in Greenbuilt tour
Contractor Klaus Meyer's 2,500-foot house is about 70 percent more efficient than the average home. But it could have been even more efficient had he discovered a green building method called the Passive House before pouring the home's foundation.

* 05/06/2008

How to keep cool without going broke
You don't have to pay through the nose to keep cool this summer. Here are some steps you can take to lower your bill, improve comfort and help save the planet.

* 04/29/2008

Earth-friendly options available for rebuilding
Several manufacturers have realized the market potential of changing their practices to make products that look no different from their old materials. And while no company is perfect, at least the options exist.

04/23/2008

'Green' pest control on the rise
Detergent water, vacuum cleaners, door sweeps. These simple household products are on the front lines of "green" pest control. Amid a new wave of environmentalism, eco-savvy consumers are realizing they no longer need to rely on traditional pesticides — which may pose health risks — to combat rodents and insects.

* 04/21/2008

Eco-books share tips on living 'green'
With Earth Day fast approaching, books on "living green" are covering bookstore shelves like kudzu – everything from the encyclopedic Green Living for Dummies to tips on doing the right environmental thing from actor Ed Begley Jr.

* 04/18/2008

How it works: Earth-friendly paint labeling
As manufacturers are required by the government to cut down on additional solvents by either reformulating or discontinuing their paint, more low- and no-VOC paint is popping up on hardware store shelves, putting it on the average consumer's radar. Here's how to find the right paint for your home.

* 04/16/2008

Organic gardening starts with seeds
There are the differences visible only to the practiced eye between conventional seeds and their organic equivalents. The variations can make all the difference in your garden.

04/14/2008

Try spring cleaning the eco-friendly way
If the idea of environmentally harmful cleaners and toxic fumes doesn't quite inspire a Mr. Clean attitude, perhaps green cleaning alternatives will

04/11/2008

When it comes to eco-friendly furnishings, green is more than a color
Trevor Webb found something worth admiring at the furniture show here: nail holes, scuffs and dents. "It's pretty cool, isn't it?" asked Webb, admiring a massive wood table made by his Van Nuys, Calif.-based furniture company Urban Woods LLC. "You wouldn't know this is reclaimed wood from soundstages and old buildings in California unless you look closely."

advertising
A KMOV.com Site
Contact Us | Advertise with Us | Help | KMOV.com | Privacy | mediakit